St. Paul daily globe., 1887-08-14
EMPLOYMENT AGENCY
Engaging Railroad Crews and
LabOrers by Scores.
How Men Are Hired and Trans
ported to the West.

There never was such demand for
labOr,' said G. S. Richards, of the
Pioneer Employment office, of Mime
apolis. 1--WE have been in this busi-
ness since 1882, and were never taxed to
laborers of all kinds and for all kinds of
work. Neither has so high wages been
paid since the war as now. Why, the
most common laborer readily obtains
S1.75 to 81 day, while tracklayerS are
paid from 81 to s2.75."
'What causes this increased de-
mand?" was asked. "Chiefy the build
ing of so many miles of new railroad all
over the country, but then we have
calls for a large number of men to
quarry stone, work in the harvest, and
teamsterS and laborerS about the city.
Why" continued Mr.. Richards, ''lOok
at this bundle of orders we have received
this week, there are orders for over 700
men for railroad work in Montana, Da-
kOta, Minnesota, Iowa and Michigan.
Here is another order for sixteen men
for Lake MinnetOnka; another one for
thirty-five men to work in stone quar-
rieS, 81 per day and steady work for five
years. Here's another. 100 men for the
500. Our services are drawn on to sup
ply men for Kansas, Missouri, TenneS-
see and Illinois.
"What guarantee do these men have
that they can get work when they ar
rive at their deStinatiOn?'
I'VE guarantee that to any man we
send out" replied Mr.. Richards, ''be
cause we have orders from headquarters
for every laborer we engage, and are
under bonds to pay them 81 per day
until they return if they find no work"
''What methods of transportation do
you furnish?'
Office fee, which varies from 81 to 81
each"
'.How do you ship?'
swell, here is crew of 80 men for
Montana for the Manitoba road. We give
each man engaged an office ticket of
certain color filled in with
his name, destination and who employs
him. This ticket he keeps in full view,
generally in his hat band, and they all
meet at the depot at given hour. while
to one of their number is entrusted,
passes for the whole crew, and gener-
ally man from the railroad company
accompanies them"
Hasn't there been frequent cries of
fraud on the part of the laborer?" Not
lately, because the last legislature fixed
for each employment agency, and that
drone out all the sharks who played
Swindling game. A reliable agency
would hardly dare to commit such
swindle, and we in the last five years
have employed over 10,000men and have
never had complaint entered
against us.
.'Then there should be no idle men
around if work is so plenty?"
Eyes, you will always find idle men,
because a certain per cent. of them
wont do anything unless they can get a
soft snap, such as cashier in bank or
a newspaper reporter. Why, the other
day party came in and wanted work,
and the spokesman remarked. .Haf
you a easy yOb? We haf bin vOrkin' for
Mr.. YonSOn for two dollar day pickin'
petaty bugs and eat ourselves, now we
want easy yOb." They wouldn't work
at railroading, driving team or harvest,
but when told them had job in one
of the banks where they could sit down
and keep the flies off the vault,
they all jumped at me and
said: "Me want dot yOb." Then,
again, another, big husky fellow
would enter in half-hearted way and
inquire: ''Hav you good yOb? We
want familiar yOb," meaning family
job. 'There are many peculiar phases
to this business" continued Mr.. Rich
ards, land one is that hosts of fellows
will work for S15 to $40 a month where
they can be near their sweetheart rather
than go out ways and get $3.50 day.
Our system of doing business Is: We
keep full record of every man we hire,
together with their name and deStina-
ton. Our books for the past three
months show the names of over / 600
whom we have employed. Railroad and
other contractors, who are OftentimeS
hundreds of miles away, find it not
only convenient but frequently indiS-
penSable to either write or telegraph
their orders to an employment agency
for a certain number of men. These or
derS are filled and the men sent forward
without expense to them or the con-
tractor, excepting small office fee to
parture of a crew for the far West?
If not you have missed an
interesting sight and an opportunity of
studying human nature. They are of
all natiOnalitieS. the Scandinavian ele
ment predominating, however. They
all have big grip, kieSter or huge
bundle, and their clothes are a study;
such variety-cOlors enough to make
the choicest bit of a craZy-wOrk quill"
''TO you experience any difficulty in
getting all you hire through"
No, none, excepting during harvest
time, when occasionally we lose few,
who Jump the train while going through
the wheat growing sections, but now we
obviate this difficulty by checking their
baggage through, and not many of them
can afford to lose it by desertiOn.
In the fall we send hundreds of men
into the pineries and all over the South,
even as far as Mississippi, to do levee
work, and as far west as Colorado.
Kansas, Indian territory and Texas"
While watching the crowds of hardy
men who earn their bread by the sweat
of their brow, you are surprised at the
babel of sound and wonder how any in
telligible meaning can be obtained, but
when you notice the rapidity and ease
with which all questions are answered
by r. Il. Koch, attendant, who speaks
fluently English, Scandinavian, French,
German and Choctaw, the solution is
given. The GLOBE scribe became
convinced by personal investigation
that Minneapolis was the labor center
of the Northwest.